Masahiro Kawai leveled the game in the ninth inning on a bases-loaded single and the Yomiuri Giants took advantage of an infielder's error to score the winning run as the defending Japan Series champions edged the Yakult Swallows 9-8 at Jingu Stadium on Wednesday.
Yomiuri scored the decisive run on a costly fielding error by Yakult third baseman Ken Suzuki, who went 3-for-4 with three RBIs, and left it to Junichi Kawahara to close out the bottom half perfectly to seal the team's fifth consecutive victory. Rodney Pedraza (1-0) got his first win for the streaking Giants.
BayStars 7, Carp 4